Dr Sabesan Sithamparanathan OBE has been elected a Fellow of BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT. He is the founder and president of PervasID, a tenant member at St John’s Innovation centre. The fellowship recognises his significant impact on the digital sector through his work and contribution to the profession.
For Dr Sithamparanathan, the award marks another milestone in a career dedicated to turning research into technology that solves everyday problems. He founded PervasID to bring his doctoral research at the University of Cambridge into commercial use, helping organisations track and locate stock and assets using battery-free RFID tags.
More than 15 years on, that work supports businesses across retail, healthcare, aerospace and manufacturing. From helping store teams locate stock to enabling hospitals to track critical equipment, PervasID’s technology provides organisations with accurate information about what they have and where to find it.
Commenting on the recognition, Dr Sithamparanathan said:
I am honoured to be elected a Fellow of the British Computer Society. When I began my research at Cambridge, I wanted to solve a practical problem. Seeing that research become technology that people use in their day-to-day work is something I’m very proud of.
There are so many colleagues, mentors and partners who have helped along the way, and I’m grateful to them all. I look forward to being part of the BCS community and sharing what I’ve learnt with engineers and entrepreneurs taking their own ideas forward.”
The recognition adds to Dr Sithamparanathan’s fellowships of the Royal Academy of Engineering and the Institution of Engineering and Technology. He has also received the Royal Academy of Engineering Silver Medal and was awarded an OBE in the King’s 2024 New Year Honours for services to engineering, innovation and entrepreneurship.
PervasID is one of many innovative technology businesses based at St John’s Innovation Centre. For nearly 40 years, the Centre has supported ambitious early-stage and growing companies by providing flexible workspace, business support, networking opportunities and access to a thriving innovation ecosystem, helping businesses develop, scale and achieve commercial success.